The present invention is an improvement to subject matter of previous commonly owned applications NAIL COLOR POLISH SELECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD (Continuation of Ser. No. 09/818,389 (filed Mar. 27, 2001)), and NAIL COLOR POLISH SELECTION SYSTEM AND METHOD (Ser. No. 09/872,929 (filed Jun. 1, 2001)), which are hereby expressly incorporated by reference herein. The present invention may be employed in accordance with the teachings of U.S. Pat. No. 6,412,658, which issued on Jul. 2, 2002, the contents of which are also incorporated by reference herein.
As addressed in the above applications and patent, historically the cosmetics industry has afforded consumers a broad variety of choices for colors (including tones, shades or hues) and effects. In the typical scenario, these products are pre-packaged according to a predetermined fixed amount of different colors or effects. The products are then ordinarily displayed to reveal a spectrum of a fixed number of colors. However, because of manufacturing and other practical limitations, point of sale displays only afford a finite number of selections for the consumer. Consequently, the consumer's choice of color will be limited by present availability or supply of a particular color choice, and also particularly by the specific colors chosen for sale in advance by the manufacturer. The consumer is afforded no practical opportunity to custom blend a color selection.
In recent years, it has also become popular to modify the ultimate visual appearance of a manicure by the addition of effects over some or all of a nail, such as a metallic effect, sparkles, shapes (e.g., hearts, stars, etc.), texture or the like. Frequently, these must be purchased and applied separately from an underlying base coat. Once again, the consumer is faced with a finite selection and will be limited in choice by availability at the point of sale.
In view of the foregoing, a need has developed for a custom cosmetic color selection system, pursuant to which a consumer or other customer (such as an intermediate retailer or wholesaler) can interact with the supplier to select a specific color, effect or both, to blend the resulting cosmetic product at or near the time of selection (e.g. on site at a point of sale location, or remotely such as by mail order, phone order or internet purchase).
The dispensing of certain ingredients for custom cosmetic formulations is known to pose challenges. For example, nitrocellulose-based nail polish ingredients (e.g., as might be employed in the practice of the present invention) are commonly prone to clogging small orifices. There is thus a need for an efficient apparatus for dispensing a cosmetic ingredient that will minimize the potential for clogging. There is also a need for an apparatus in which a plurality of the operation steps are automated, to minimize technician operation. There is also a need for an apparatus that permits for ease of supply and replenishment of formulation ingredients.